Separation
by Prestige Productions
Summary: Sometimes it's just too hard to say goodbye to someone you care about, sometimes the pain of such an action causes those feelings of love to erupt into burning ashes of hate. And sometimes, from those same ashes. A new love rises *ON INDEFINITE HIATUS*
1. So Long, My friend

_**Ladies and gentlemen, I am MardukWritInd and I'd like to welcome you to the second of my "RTX Outfit-inspired" fics, this time putting the focus on everyone's favorite cookie-loving protagonist.**_

 _ **Disclaimer: RWBY belongs to Rooster Teeth**_

 _I used to believe in fairy tales._

 _In great heroes who fought for what was right and vanquished evil._

 _But then I saw what really happens to a hero when things get hard._

 _How quickly that valor can become venom._

 _How the brave can turn bitter._

 _I used to believe in heroes._

 _But now all I see are hypocrites._

Ruby Rose would be traveling the outskirts of Haven, having gone ahead of her teammates who were still a good distance behind her now. Grimm activity had increased since the collapse of Beacon Academy and the complete shutdown of communications between nations, they had become more aggressive and emboldened for reasons she didn't grasp and the three month journey from Patch to Mistral had been a perilous one for the crimsonette and her new teammates.

The members of the now former Team JNPR: Jaune Arc, Nora Valkyrie, and Lie Ren, and herself were now united by both the pain of loss and the need for answers in the wake of the attack on their once cherished Academy.

But as the hooded Huntress traveled the forested areas outside the city, it wasn't just the hunger for answers that drove her, nor was it the Grimm who were now attacking the city below her even as she unfolded her Crescent Rose and leapt into the fray of chaos happening below.

 _"I can sense him here, there's no way this many Grimm could be around without a huge source of negative emotions being at the center."_ She would quickly dispatch of a pair of Beowolves which had attempted to rush her upon landing before running forward to engage the remaining Beowolves, her silver eyes now hardened orbs of determination as she fought against the creatures of darkness. "You can stop hiding now, we've always been able to sense each other even before Beacon collapsed! I know you were at our home when I finally came to, why aren't you with Yang? She needs you-"

She would gasp as an Ursa reared up behind her in the middle of her ranting and was now preparing to bring its massive claws down upon her, only for the reaper to react and decapitate its head. "As I was saying…" Ruby would stop speaking as the decapitated Grimm split in half before her eyes, not knowing what had caused the extra damage.

"You were saying that your bonehead of a sister needs me, which I find hilarious since she was the one who had your pops kick me out." A voice would echo throughout the walls of the abandoned city, but it was one she was very familiar with as she rested her weapon at her side while he made his way out of the tower in front of her. "Love the new outfit Little Rose, very much like a red riding hood come to life." The crimsonette would bristle at the venomous tone mixed within his compliment, time had clearly done little to mend the wounds he had suffered that day.

"Can't say the feeling is mutual hon, isn't the black cloak a little cliché?" Ruby would give a lopsided smile as she saw a familiar lock of silver beneath the black, it was a good sign that maybe some part of her friend still existed beneath the brooding façade. "Come on now, I've showed you what I've got going for me. Don't I get something in return?" She would place her friend hand on her hip while flashing a more pleasant smile at him, receiving a sigh of sorts before a gloved hand would undo the clasp binding the cloak to his person.

"I hate that you still very much know how to push my buttons Ruby…" The cloak would fall to the ground before dissipating into wisps of black smoke: The wolf Faunus known as Bálor Moonlight now stood across from her, the lone lock of silver hair now proved to be a stark contrast to the mane of black hair flowing behind him. Although as her eyes roamed down his form she noticed other subtle differences to his appearance: Gone were the casual clothes associated with the young man she once called a friend, the black jeans replaced by stark black military slacks and a pair of steel-toed boots adorned with his new emblem: A scarred wolf biting down on a thorn-filled rose. His upper body would reveal much more of the same color scheme as he had traded in the colorful wrestling t-shirts for a form fitting top with not-so cleverly disguised plates of armor that shimmered in the moonlight. But perhaps the most disquieting part of his altered appearance was the grotesque burn that now adorned the right side of his face, her body shuddering as she briefly remembered his small clash with Cinder Fall after they both had witnessed the tragic passing of Pyrrha Nikos. She had remained frozen in shock and pain, while he had been overtaken by rage and leapt in to fight. An action which cost him dearly as the raven-haired easily knocked him away with a fiery backhand to his face, sending him screaming in agony as the smell of burning flesh filled her nostrils.

Before the headache erupted into bloom and the world went white.

"I'm so sorry." Her silver-eyes would feel with tears as she nervously took a step forward to embrace him, stopping once she saw the aura of black forming around him. "If I hadn't frozen up then-"

A sword would lash out at her quickly, causing her eyes to widen in shock before stumbling back and falling back onto the ground.

"If you had jumped in then we wouldn't be having this conversation right now dammit!"

Balor would return his sword back into his hand before summoning the remaining two with a flick of his wrist as they hovered beside him, his lone amber eye glowing as the right eye remained closed. "I was lucky enough to get away with a burn after what that witch did to Pyrrha, lord knows what she would've done to you!" His hands would tremble visibly as the anger surged through his body, taking a breath as he forced himself to be calm. "Why are you even here, last I heard you were traveling with what's left of JNPR. I doubt you'd pull a Blake and just go AWOL on them."

Ruby would wince upon him referencing Blake's abandonment, standing up and retrieving Crescent Rose as she turned to face him with a more determined glare on her face.

"You sound just like Yang, you're counting out Blake just because you're angry with her. There must be a reason why she left-" The crimsonette would block his sword before leaping away as the now black-maned wolf Faunus charged into fight her, using her speed to move behind him and wrap her arms around his waist. "Just stop it! I know you're angry, and hurt, but going around Remnant attacking people isn't how you work through this!"

The red-hooded girl would cling to her friend as tightly as her arms would let her, she had already seen two of her best friends die during the Vytal Festival: Penny, an artificial girl from Atlas was torn apart via an accidental burst of power by the now deceased Pyrrha Nikos, who was the second death for her to witness as Cinder had used her powers to literally render the once proud spear maiden to nothing but embers that would carried away by the wind, her partner had been whisked away to Atlas by the hands of a father who sought not only to protect the crumbling image of his own company by his own daughter as well. Even her own sister had taken to falling into despair following the loss of her friends, her school, and her arm who would later take to telling the younger woman that "sometimes bad things just happen".

"I'm not gonna lose you too! I've already lost enough friends because of what happened three months ago and I'm not going to let what Cinder did to you change things between us!" Tears would fall down Ruby's cheeks an she did her best to keep him from attacking her, although that did little to keep him from breaking out into a fit of laughter as she finished talking.

"You honestly believe **THAT'S** why I'm doing any of this, because Cinder Fall maimed me?!" The amber-eyed wolf would flare his Semblance outward, knocking the young Huntress away before turning to face her. "You're really naïve if you really think that a burn scar and your sister roasting me like a pig on a spit would drive me to start hunting Grimm and Huntsmen alike!" His swords would hover around him as he assumed a fighting stance, giving the crimsonette Huntress time to get to her feet as the black aura flared out and pulsed like a beating heart.

"Th-then why?!" She would hold Crescent Rose at the ready as she stood across from the man who once saw her as a friend and lover, but now resembled the heartless beast from his own checkered past. "Aren't we all supposed to be on the same side fighting the Grimm, and what about Cinder?!"

Bálor would shake his head firmly as he pointed his blades at her, having forged them from what remained of the ruined Atleasian weapons that had rampaged throughout Vale and Beacon Academy. "Do you really think anybody's on friendly terms after what happened?! Border Security's been tightened everywhere, humans are even more distrustful of the Faunus, and God have mercy on poor Atlas right now because they got the worst end of the deal. It's anarchy there!" He would notice the hesitation flash across her face upon mentioning Atlas, knowing full well that thanks to the fall of Beacon that Ruby had been unable to contact her former partner. "Weiss is fine love, I did a little job for the SDC a while back and they're holding things together as best they can. She misses you dearly."

Ruby would smile slightly at the thought of her lost friend, even though the heiress and the wolf had never gotten along at all during their time as students, it was clear that he had enough respect to personally convey a message for her on the younger Schnee's behalf.

"I'm glad to know that she's doing okay, I miss her too..along with Blake and Yang and everyone else we lost that day." She would look at him cautiously, even as his weapons seemed to follow her every twitch. "Have you heard from any of them..the others I mean?" The cookie-loving girl hoped that since he had made it to Atlas and back in one relatively one piece (although his current outbursts of mania left her more than concerned.) that he may have caught wind of her missing teammate in the course of his travels.

Balor would run a hand through his black mane as he tried to keep from laughing at how quickly her priorities shifted from preparing to fight him, to once again acting like they were two friends catching up on old times. "Incredible, I tell you that I've spent the last three months killing off Huntsmen and Grimm and yet all you wanna know about is that damn cat." He would throw up his hands in frustration as two of his blades flew down to meet him, even as was still watching the red-hooded girl's hopeful expression. "I guess it wouldn't even matter if I told you that the people I killed had all lost their way and were now extorting from the people they wanted to protect, more like the common thug than Huntsmen and Huntresses!"

"So, basically you?" The crimsonette would smirk as she saw his angry expression falter and become one of confusion, causing her to giggle as he tried to compose himself. Clearly for all his fiery talk about how people were afraid and deceitful, he still had some trust left in her to show his true feelings that he usually kept trapped behind one gimmick or another.

"Please, I'm a mercenary woman! I do what I do for money, not because of some great lofty ideal like being a great knight in shining armor. That's Jaune's schtick anyway."

The wolf Faunus would twirl his weapons and let out a small growl as he stepped forward whilst baring his fangs. "Speaking of dear old Jauney, you two have gotten awful chummy lately."

The crimsonette would roll her eyes before hefting her scythe at the ready as the fair-haired knight in question had always been a sore subject for her friend, Yang had once chalked this behavior up to jealousy.

 _"If Jaune and Pyrrha weren't already so close, then there's a pretty good chance that you two goofballs might have ended up together. And since wolves are so territorial about their mates in the first place, well..it's self-explanatory there sis."_

"Are we really about to stand here and have this argument again, how many times do I have to say it before it gets through that jerky crusted head of yours: Jaune and I are just friends!" She would begin rushing in to meet his swords with a quick slash of her Crescent Rose, before sidestepping the lone solitary blade that had been floating around him and trying to land a spin kick as he leaned back just out of her range with a cocky smirk before using his Semblance to send his third blade to strike her in the back. "Way too slow for your usual style." She would wink before disappearing in a flurry of roses before the sword would reach her hood, causing the startled wolf to fight off his own weapon before feeling the pointed edge of her scythe at his throat. "Are we done with our little temper tantrum?"

Bálor would snarl as he felt the bite of Crescent Rose at his neck, not expecting her to keep him in such a precarious position instead of trying to take him head on as she would have in the past. "…You've gotten better Rubes, I gotta say that you've definitely gotten the best of me… **From three months ago!** " He would flare out his Semblance to forcibly wrest Crescent Rose from the younger woman's grip before backflipping over her and readying the blood red wristlets that he had hidden up his sleeves which quickly unfolded into a familiar pair of dragon-headed gauntlets. "Ya know, because I was holding back in the good old days." He would telekinetically return her weapon to the crimsonette before taking another fighting stance as his swords returned to their sheathes, the grin on his face dissipating as he mentally prepared himself for the true battle even as his opponent was now realizing just what he was planning to fight her with.

"Those are Yang's weapon's..how would you even have them, there's no way dad would let you back inside the house after kicking you out!" Ruby would examine the weapons covering his hands closely, the usual golden color had been replaced by a stark and almost blood red color, the fangs on the dragon's "head" were now protruding outward to act as small piercing weapons, and she suspected that the ammo was no longer the usual shotgun/incendiary combo that her older sibling favored using. "I swear to God, if you hurt any of them I'll-"

The wolf would roll his eyes in disgust at the younger woman's insinuations as he took a few practice jabs at her shadow, finally re-assuming his stance before hardening his own gaze. "I told you already, I'm a mercenary..not a goddamn thug. Your family is perfectly fine, took every fiber of my being not to peek in on Yang while she was showering though." His mind would briefly sink to the gutter as he imagined the brawler in the comfort of a steamy shower, even with one arm she was still very much a vision of loveliness.

Ruby would sigh as she readied Crescent Rose for a second fight, loading up an ammo clip as she felt the air around them grow heavy with the tension permeating from their hearts. "And this is why I chose to travel with Jaune instead of following you into the darkness: He knows what he wants, he's honest and sweet, he wouldn't make jokes like that."

Bálor would snarl audibly at her words, in one sense he was finally satisfied to see that his suspicions towards Ruby's feelings for Jaune were confirmed. But at the same time, he could feel his own heart beginning to falter with the weight of a second abandonment from his not so little rose.

"Well..it's nice to know that you've pretty much destroyed my last reason to give you quarter." He would close his eyes and finally let go of the last vestiges of his happiness, the black aura enveloping him in its familiar cloak as his blades also rose to join him in battle. "I could stand here and say that I won't ever stop loving you, but that would just make me both a liar and a thief now would it?" With those words and a final tear shed for who he used to be, the black-maned wolf would charge forward and attack the crimsonette who was already charging forward to meet his blades with her scythe.

"Pyrrha!" Jaune Arc would find himself racing through the halls of the Beacon's tower, in reality he knew that much of that place had been destroyed during the attack on Beacon and that the structure he now found himself running in was very much a facsimile created by his own troubled heart. It was the beginning of a very long nightmare that he had been suffering from since beginning his journey alongside Ruby and the others, and even though their bond had allowed him to endure the harder portions of Pyrrha's death. But this nightmarish chase would continue to torment him nonetheless.

 _"Stop it Jaune, you already know how this twisted journey happens. You've been going through this for a while now: First we run through this stupid corridor for what seems like forever, then we meet up with Pyrrha who's fighting some freaky fire witch."_

As sure as his own quick-witted mind could prompt it, the fair-haired knight would find himself standing at the top of Beacon tower where his now deceased partner was doing her best to hold off the raven-haired pyromancer attacking her, even using the shattered gears of the tower to try and bury the witch who seemed to escape the trap with a burst of power. _"Then Pyrrha tries using her shield to counter this woman's arrow..only to…"_ He would watch on in horror as the arrow in question seemed to phase right through the spear maiden's shield and puncture her ankle, sending his beloved to one knee as her aura reserves seemed to vanish entirely.

Jaune had witnessed this outcome every night, and despite the claims that had stated that he was in control of his own dreams could do nothing to change what would come next.

 _"Why can't I look away, why is it that I'm forced to watch the death of someone I truly care about every single night?!"_ He would cry out in agony as the raven-haired woman delivered a final arrow to Pyrrha's heart, before placing her hand on the top of the dying woman's head and destroying her in one final show of power as Pyrrha's body scattered off into the wind, leaving only the crown she wore in her hair as a final memento of her existence. _"And here comes the usual villain spiel when she claims that I'll never be able to stop her and that she's coming for me next."_

Jaune would square up his shoulders as the woman turned to face him with a sultry smile upon her face, even as he wished he could decapitate the woman with all his heart.

 _"Tonight is the night that red riding hood falls, devoured by her pet wolf, cloak and all."_

This would prove to be enough of a shock to cause him to bolt awake with a gasp, feeling the sweat trickling down his face as he tried to collect his thoughts and remember just where they were. "That's right, we're outside a town in Mistral that we're going to investigate for Grimm the next day." He would sigh and lean back tiredly as he gazed up at the stars, wondering why this dream startled him so much on this occasion.

"The bit at the end was so strange, something about red riding hood being devoured by a wolf. What do you think it means Ruby-" As Jaune turned to speculate on the strange ending with his new partner, he would be shocked to find her sleeping bag empty and her scroll active as he leaned over to see what she had been investigating.

"These are all articles about sightings of a wolf Faunus in Mistral, but why would she be so intrigued in a wolf?" His speculation would stop as he heard a rumbling in the distance, suddenly worried about his friend's well being as he quickly grabbed Corcea Mors and prepared to head off in the direction of the rumbling.

"Between that stupid dream and now Ruby going missing, I have a very bad feeling about all this!"

Ruby couldn't understand what she was now facing in the streets of the abandoned city, her friend now chasing her with the same frantic need to destroy that he had displayed during his encounter with team CRDL in the past.

 _"What in the world am I fighting now, because it sure as hell isn't any friend of mine!"_ The crimsonette would yelp as she narrowly avoided one of his swords and tried to counter with a spinning slash, only to find that he was now in midair and unleashing a hail of shells from Yang's stolen Howling Dragons which she quickly evaded by running up the side of a nearby building and rushing to meet him in midair as he had finally stopped to reload his spent cartridges. "You may have the advantage in arsenal but I'm still faster!" She would use her Semblance to once again sneak behind him, only to be met by one of his swords as the black-haired wolf let himself freefall to the ground.

"You really think I'm stupid enough to fall for that cheap trick again little girl?!" There was no mistaking the pure malice in his voice as he finished reloading the gauntlets and opened fire once again, only to growl as a flurry of roses were left in her wake. "That's a new one-" His instincts would cause him to leap forward as a shot barely missed him, quickly sniffing the air as he ran as fast as he could to avoid her sniper fire while tracking the scent of rose petals on the wind. _"If she thinks I'm going to be stupid enough try to go shot for shot with her, then she's got another thing coming!"_ He would immediately begin scaling the buildings while trying to get a fix on her hiding spot, only to met by a twister of rose petals surrounding him. "Wh-what the hell?!"

Ruby would watch from atop the nearby clock tower as the wolf Faunus was ensnared by her trap, if this were a mock battle then she would almost certainly be applauding her own ingenuity at baiting him into falling for it. _"I'm sorry…I love you."_ She would ball a fist in anger as the twister bore down upon him, a deafening howl being heard in the distance as she turned away to sob quietly to herself. "I shouldn't have said what I did, I should've tried harder to save you!" Ruby would slump down to her knees and let the tears fall, her mind flashing back to the happier times of their relationship with one another.

"It's…not…over!" His voice would echo upon the streets of the empty town as Bálor slowly floated to the ground, his swords and hitting the ground before he did as the cloak disappeared from his body once again. "I won't..let myself..be defeated like this!"

Ruby would look down at the streets below her, shocked to find that the black had left his hair to make it a familiar silver once again. "How did he even survive that, not even Grimm could stand up to that trap!" The hooded Huntress's body would react quickly as she disappeared in a burst of speed to help her now weakened friend, wrapping him up in a tight embrace even as he struggled to push her away once again. "I'm sorry, I'm sorry..I'm so sorry!"

Bálor would let out a weakened growl as he tried to squirm out of her grip, even as she kept on muttering apologies to him for the battle they had just had. As if she insisted on shouldering the blame for all of it, even though he knew himself to be the sole instigator of their battle. "You..idiot…you were only defending yourself. Stop…apologizing!" With a burst of anger, he would finally send Ruby away from him, struggling to stand up as both of the tired combatants heard someone calling for the crimsonette.

"Ruby! Ruby sound off if you can hear me!" Jaune's voice would be loudly calling out to her, even as he desperately searched for her through the ruined city. The raven-haired woman's warning to him being a constant reminder of what kind of peril could await him, something that pushed him to run harder through the streets.

"Seems like your knight in shining armor…has finally arrived to save you." The wolf would smile weakly, ignoring the painful protests of his body as he retrieved his weapons.

"It must be nice…to have someone who loves you, treasure that…feeling." He would groan and let out a few curses as he forced himself into a run, the knight's panicked calls getting way too close for his liking.

"I…I'm here Jaune!" Ruby would call out to him as loudly as she could, her voice barely managing a strangled croak before remembering the pouch of water she'd tied to her waist, drinking greedily from it even as the familiar blue slacks of Jaune Arc finally rounded the corner.

"Ruby!" Jaune would smile in relief as he found his cookie-loving companion sitting down on the city streets, although that same relief would soon be replaced by dread as he observed the growing bruises on her face, as well as the various cuts along her body told him that she had endured a battle with something besides the Grimm on this night. "Ruby..what happened to you, what happened..to this place?"

The crimsonette would shake her head quietly as she gathered her thoughts and began to stand on her feet once more, unlike Bálor she had suffered relatively less damage during the course of their battle.

At least in the physical sense.

"Ruby, say something..I know that not even the Grimm could cause this kind of damage! It's too precise!" The fair-haired young man's pleas would fall upon deaf ears as she began to walk past him, deciding to grab her hand and stop her before she could get too far away. "Aren't we partners now, doesn't that mean that we don't keep anything from each other and-" His plea would be cut short as the reaper's lips touched his, at first he was too stunned to realize what she was asking of him. But as her lips once again connected with his own, he remembered the reason that he had raced down there alone: To protect one of the few people who were holding him together during what was arguably the toughest struggle in his life, and while she was generally safe and sound for the most part, it was clear to him that something had happened to push her to need this level of comfort.

 _"It's just like what happened with Pyrrha the day Beacon fell, only this time..I'm not gonna let Ruby face whatever this is alone, I'm going to protect you with every fiber of my being!"_ With that silent declaration, Jaune would wrap his arms around the smaller woman and return her kiss in kind. Both of them knowing that such actions would inevitably change the dynamic between them, whether it would turn out to be for the better or not was something that only time could tell.

 _ **I honestly wish I could say that the one was a labor of love that I'm proud of, and from a certain storytelling standpoint I am. I put forth whatever feelings I had at the time into this fic whether they be good, bad, or indifferent. I tried to channel what little I've seen of Volume 4 into it without it turning into something crazy. I honestly don't feel like I fully accomplished that.**_

 _ **But that's neither here nor there, and as much as I'd like to keep ranting and raving on my emotional gunk, I'm gonna catch what's pretty much my only meal today then crawl into bed before starting Weiss's fic tomorrow.**_

 _ **To those that like what I do, whether straight RWBY fic or crossover I say thank you and I hope that you continue supporting me.**_

 _ **To those that don't, I can only offer my sincere apologies and hope that you find a fic you do like.**_

 _ **Until tomorrow folks.**_


	2. I refuse to Believe

_**The following is a revised version of the original Chapter 2 of this story, for better or worse.**_

 _ **Disclaimer: Rooster Teeth owns RWBY, and the wait to Volume 4 is almost over.**_

 _"Do you believe in Destiny?"_ Pyrrha Nikos, the girl who seemed destined for victory every time she stepped out onto the battlefield, the warrior who saw fit to train an upstart like Jaune Arc from a bumbling novice to someone who held his own on the battlefield, the very woman that every guy in Beacon claimed they wanted to be with but were too spineless to say word one to her face, had posed this very odd question to Bálor who was passing by the Amity Arena mere hours before Beacon's downfall. The wolf would be walking around in a visible funk, no doubt that the incident surrounding Yang's bout in the finals weighed heavy upon his shoulders as much as it did any other student among Beacon's ranks.

But like the kind and caring soul she usually was; the redhead had taken it upon herself to do what she could to try and raise his spirits, even as her own were weighed down by the profound revelations that Ozpin and the other instructors had entrusted her with on the same day that the aforementioned incident occurred.

 _"Well, do you?"_

The silver-maned young man would look at her in genuine confusion; not expecting anyone to talk to him given the visible scowl upon his face, let alone to be approached by Pyrrha Nikos of all people, somewhat who despite her overall kind nature had some disdain towards him given his treatment of her partner. _"I do believe in Destiny, but only because I view it as my enemy."_ The amber-eyed Faunus would try to return to his sullen-faced walk, only to find that Beacon's star pupil was now purposely blocking his path to the cafeteria as her emerald green eyes had taken on a knowing edge to them. " _What is it that you want me to say Nikos: That I spent my life working hard on becoming a male version of you, some great superstar who NEVER seems to stumble despite the obstacles thrown in her general direction?"_ His lupine ears would droop in agitation as the young man raked his hands through his hair while letting out a frustrated sigh at her continued attempt at conversation, remembering how she and the pancake loving Nora Valkyrie had pretty much laid waste to two members of his former unit, now masquerading as Team BRST of the Shade Academy from Vacuo.

Pyrrha would frown and gently lay a hand upon his shoulder, tightening the grip as he tried to shrug her aside like some pesky door-to-door saleswoman instead of a fellow classmate who was trying to reach out to the lone wolf. _"I want you to tell me why you insist on acting like you have to walk alone, when so many people are still trying to reach out to you..even someone who should have no reason to do so."_

The spear maiden would continue to search his amber eyes for some sign that her words had reached him, the wolf having been uncharacteristically silent for the past minute. Normally she would've given up trying to talk to the angry young Huntsman-to-be and left him to his own devices, but after what she had to Jaune previously in her attempt to try and talk through the enormity of the task that her teachers had placed upon her..and that she had selflessly accepted despite the dangers that it would bring her way. _"I want to try and get to understand you before everything changes, before I become something other than who I am right now."_ Pyrrha's eyes would begin to well up with tears at the thought of her future as the Fall Maiden, wandering Remnant with no true place to call home lest she bring attention of the antagonistic variety.

Those who would attempt to use her for her power, or attack those closest to her in order for the future Maiden to let down her guard and strike at her in a moment of weakness in order to take them away from her.

Bálor would remain silent upon seeing her confident façade beginning to fade, her words causing his heart to waver and see the truth of a deep-seated pain that not even her better half was unaware of.

 _"I keep myself isolated and alone, because I don't belong here. I'm only here because Headmaster Ozpin seems to see something in me that most people won't understand."_ He would hesitate visibly, gesturing for her to follow him to a more secluded area of the Academy and not stopping until they were inside an old storehouse cluttered with out of date textbooks and even some cracked busts of Peter Port's visage. _"I'm just some sick social science experiment that Ozpin's hellbent on getting results for, my destiny is whatever that man's endgame is..and that's why I view it as my enemy."_ The agitated Faunus would clench and unclench his fists as he tried to suppress a growl of disgust towards the man who had released him from his iron fortress of solitude, only to turn around and cage him a prison built of empty promises and cryptic expectations and then surrounding him with people whose hearts would shatter upon enduring a modicum of his blood stained past.

 _"So that's why you attacked Team CRDL as viciously as you did the day of your first practice battle, why you rejected Ruby when she confessed her true feelings for you during our last dance prior to the Vytal Festival. You're hoping that by acting like some cold-hearted beast that Professor Ozpin would give up on his experiment and return you to wherever you previously called home isn't it?"_ Pyrrha would smile sadly as he turned away from her in shame, his fists clenched so hard that the knuckles had gone white. _"But it's as you yourself said: Ozpin wants something from you and won't relent until he gets it."_

What she did next would shock the two of them as the statuesque redhead would gently wrap her arms around the young man's waist, a gesture of intimacy that she imagined giving to her partner Jaune out of love was instead being given to Bálor out of a shared pain that the wolf was unaware of. Only after the shock settled and the wolf's slightly smaller form relaxed against her did the future Fall Maiden begin speaking again, this time in a much softer and gentle tone. _"I can't promise you that things will turn out the way you want them to once our time at Beacon comes to an end, but I can promise that you won't have to bear the weight of your burdens alone."_

He would chuckle mirthlessly at her soft spoken words, gently prying himself free of her embrace and taking a step towards the door only to be stopped once more. This time being stopped by the suddenly immovable metal door that allowed them access to the storage area.

 _"Look Nikos, do you really expect me to believe that you'll give up a happy future with Arc just to become my..admittedly attractive keeper?"_ The wolf would laugh bitterly before trying to bust through the door shoulder first, only to wince in agony from the pain of his reckless actions. _"You have no reason to take up that heavy of a responsibility, I'm just an arrest waiting to happen once I leave this place..trust me Pyrrha, that unlike me you were meant for something greater then watching over a beaten pup."_

Ruby Rose would be walking along the road back to Team RNJR's campsite in silence, despite the warmth she felt from holding Jaune's hand at that moment there still existed a cold dread in the pit of her stomach.

 _"What the hell did I just do?"_ Flashes of her kiss with Jaune assaulted her thoughts followed up by echoes of the pointed words of her now former friend, the crimsonette had honestly tried her best to break through his steel fortress of a heart with only minimal success. Going from being consistently scowled at during most classes and across the cafeteria, to the two of them sharing small talk and even a joke here and there. With each passing day she had managed to chip away at his barriers a little more, eventually the scowl became a stone-faced nod of respect, then it became a sly smile of acceptance, and before either side recognized it they had learned to enjoy one another's company without question. _"Why the hell do I feel bad about this, I poured out my heart to him ages ago and he kept me away..right when I thought he had finally let me in."_ Her gaze would fall to her boots that were treading a trail through the grass behind them, leaving a metaphorical trail of broken promises behind them.

"Penny for your thoughts partner?" Jaune had finally decided to break the silence that had been building up between them, the kiss between them had left him feeling somewhat guilty considering the circumstances between himself and the now deceased Pyrrha. He had discovered how he truly felt about her in what had been fated to be their final moments together and even after pleading to both Ruby and Weiss to do everything they could to save her life, the end result was that his friend and partner had given her life in vain as she had tried to stop the raven-haired pyromancer that now haunted his nightmares. "Maybe you could finally explain what happened back there in that town? Seemed like the Grimm weren't as intense as the others we've encountered up til now, so that's a good thing huh?" The red hooded young woman would stop in her tacks, her silver eyes now brimming with tears as whatever seemed to be troubling her seemed to be boiling to the surface.

"Yeah so what if they were, that didn't make the nightmare that I went through any easier to swallow okay?!" Her outburst was enough to make Jaune look at her like she had an extra head growing out of her shoulder, Ruby was never the kind to lose her temper outright. If anything, she was the one to help keep somebody else's kettle from boiling over with her bubbly demeanor and winning smile. "I'm just..exhausted from all this fighting we've been enduring and it feels like we haven't gotten any closer to why Beacon was attacked..why Pyrrha had to die." She would slump down onto the ground tiredly as the tears finally began to flow freely as she started pounding the grass in anger, even as Jaune sat down next to her in stunned silence.

"Ruby, I know things have been getting frantic lately, the Grimm have been increasing in number and are attacking more often but that's why we're here. We have to be the ones to hold things together and protect everyone, we have to be the heroes everyone needs right now." The fair-haired young man wouldn't immediately notice the stinging pain in his cheek due to the blinding speed of her slap, but once the pain flared up his hand would go to his cheek as he winced in pain.

"Let's get one thing straight here: I'm TRYING to be the hero that everyone needs me to be, but at the end of the day I'm just a girl whose lost her friends. Blake's gone AWOL since we got back to Vale and nobody's seen hide nor hair of her since, Yang's not only lost her arm in the fight but also her spirit. I haven't seen her that broken up about anything since some asshole stuck gum in her hair when she was younger." The crimsonette would pull at her hair in frustration as she imagined her teammates shattering and disappearing like a mirror struck by a rock. Ruby would stop speaking as she recalled something that the wolf Faunus had said prior to their battle, he had been working for the SDC up until recently and had even relayed a message for her from the heiress herself. "Weiss is probably the only one of us keeping her head above water, even if she is in the one place that is probably worse than Hell in her mind." The crimsonette could only imagine what her former partner was being forced to endure now that she was back under her family's strict rules.

"Yeah, your team may be scattered in different places but at least they're all alive!" Jaune would ball a fist of his own as he stared up at the night sky in sadness, the nightmare from earlier returning in brief flashes. "My partner's dead because of some maniacal fire-slinging witch, and no one's been able to properly grieve for any of the people they've lost in the attack because the kingdoms all decided to react impulsively and either completely lock down their borders or beef up security in the larger cities."

The fair-haired knight would close his eyes as his thoughts went to his parents, no doubt concerned for the well being of their son as he traveled through one of the more Grimm-heavy areas of Remnant. "Things are terrible for everyone, but that's exactly why we need to keep pushing forward and fight back against all of this insanity. All it takes for evil to succeed is for good men and women to do nothing." Jaune would stare up at Remnant's broken moon with a quiet conviction etched upon his face, however the younger man also had an ulterior motive for deciding to have their journey go through this part of Haven: for a couple days away was the village where his fallen partner was born and raised. He owed it to her parents to relay the news of her death himself, better that they hear it from someone who loved her than some impersonal courier message.

"Right…I guess I stepped over the line with that last remark, everyone on Team RWBY's still breathing and fighting the good fight in their own way. I just don't understand what's going on with them anymore, I wish I could reach out to them and ask why we had to break apart." Ruby would sigh as she laid back on the grass, not even minding that her hood would probably end up with some very unwanted grass stains later on. "I need to know why Blake decided to run away instead of staying with us, we've endured so much up to that point and we trusted her regardless of what secrets popped up."

Jaune would raise a curious eyebrow at her choice of words, wondering why she was so focused on a singular individual before remembering the articles he had found on her scroll. "You say that you want to ask Blake why she ran, you're worried about Yang losing her confidence, and you seem to know that despite being holed up in Atlas that Weiss is holding her own." The blonde-haired Knight would furrow his brow in thought as he tried to connect the dots in her words to what she had seen on the red hood's scroll, but no matter how he spun the facts and tried to fit the pieces together that everything remained a jumble of confusion. "Ruby, why have you been tracking articles involving a wolf Faunus in Mistral?"

He would watch as her expression changed into one of grief and shame, almost resembling a child that had been caught with their hand in the cookie jar. (which for Ruby was an everyday thing, only minus the reprimand and the punishment.)

"I'm sorry Jaune, but I just needed to make sure he was still alive. I already lost enough friends in The Fall and I wasn't about to lose a lead on one of the few that I could track!" He would sigh as her expression only worsened and tears began to form in her eyes once more, the picture was beginning to form in his mind as the situation became clearer.

"You did find him, and something happened between the two of you didn't it? Something so bad that the two of you tore up an already ruined town getting into some petty brawl."

This was the breaking point for the younger Huntress as the tears started back up, this time they would be followed by the softest of sobs as she tried to control her emotions and fight off the sadness fracturing her heart.

"I just don't understand why he would lash out at me like that, not just with his words but..but..." Ruby would shake her head in disbelief as she recalled the cold-hearted glare in his amber eye, the venom laced in his words as he spoke to her. "He looked at me like I was just another Grimm to be hunted down and slain, an obstacle that was in the way of whatever or whoever he was hunting before I found him." The red-hooded girl had since crawled into her friend's embrace once it was clear that the tears showed no since of stopping, even as his arms wrapped around her tightly in response to her words in an effort to protect her from the grief that seemed to wear down her happy spirits.

"Ruby..are you telling me that he showed up here just to attack you? He's a cold-hearted bastard that's for sure but he always kept a soft spot for you." The silence that followed was enough for him to take it as an answer of affirmation, now the picture was crystal clear to the fair-haired young man: Ruby had left their camp site when she had finally managed to track down her missing friend, only to find that he was very much a different man from the silver-maned goof who had roamed the halls of the once peaceful academy.

"And how did you even manage to follow him here in the first place, someone as guarded in life as he is isn't stupid enough to leave signs of where he was headed." Jaune would wait until the cookie-loving Huntress had begun to calm down and compose herself, his friend may have been a prodigy of a Huntress and a complete weapons freak but expert tracker she was not.

"I can't properly explain it, but ever since Bálor showed up to Beacon that first day I've always been able to figure out where he was hiding out and vice-versa. No matter how hard he would try to get away from me we would always end up bumping into one another, like some weird set of cosmic magnets I could always find my big bad wolf." The crimsonette-haired reaper would blush quietly as she realized exactly how she had worded her response. "It's stupid huh?"

Jaune would shake his head silently as he brushed away a stray tear from her silver eyes, he had always found them very unusual in the early days of their time as students of Beacon. But as time passed and they had gotten closer to one another, those silver orbs had become twin pools of light that pierced the veil of his darkest nightmare and helped guide him back to the waking world.

Back to the warmth that came with the presence of her and her treasured red hood.

 _"I can understand his contempt towards me, we've never really gotten along in the whole time that we've known each other. But Ruby was the only person that he ever truly seemed to be at peace around, so then why the hell would he attack her of all people?"_

It was the exact same question he asked himself whenever he was forced to endure the nightmare that was Pyrrha's demise, however unlike that unchangeable sequence of events this was something that he could deal with on a more personal level as his expression hardened into one of determination. "Ruby, I need you to tell me everything that happened." Under normal circumstances Jaune Arc wasn't the kind of man to hold a grudge against anyone, but with the fall of Beacon and the loss of someone dear to his heart, it was clear that the time for such pacifist thinking was done.

He wasn't about to find that fire-spewing woman anytime soon, (apart from his continuing nightmare) but Ruby had made it perfectly clear that the wolf had been somewhere nearby in the area. He had tried to hurt the girl who had been helping to keep him whole, whose kiss had brought a brief spark of light back into his heart after the spear maidens demise had snuffed it out entirely.

It was time to return the year long animosity he had been shown by the amber-eyed demon with double the interest.

It was time for payback.

Bálor Moonlight stood alone in a darkened cave that used to be home to a group of Ursa, battered, beaten, and bruised even before he discovered the shadowy sanctuary he would charge into battle with nothing but his swords and a heart brimming with anger. But even that madness did little to help him win the silence he now found himself enveloped in, it was only after a long and bloody struggle that cost him the vision in his left eye that he managed to win the night.

"Dammit, I can't afford to die here..not now." The injured Faunus would struggle to rise to his feet with the aid of a jagged rock, wincing as it bit into his skin as he relied on it to help him stand once more. The memory of his conversation with the now-deceased Pyrrha playing out before his eyes like a fevered dream made real.

 _"You honestly expect me to believe that something as powerful as these Maidens exist? That there's actually people capable of using MAGIC!?"_ He would watch his past self tremble with rage as he remembered the incredible tale that the spear maiden had told him, a tale of four women whose powers had been given to them by a shut-in of a wizard as thanks for bringing kindness and hope into his withered life. It was as fantastic as the fairy tale most children heard while being put to bed. _"This is madness, if there really were women that strong in Remnant then why not eradicate the Grimm and end this cycle of horseshit!"_ The wolf had been incensed to the point that the objects in the store room were trembling violently as his rage continued to build, but Pyrrha stood brave and resolute in the face of his tide of fury nonetheless and continued to plead her case.

 _"No, but rest assured that every word of what I'm saying is true. I've seen the Fall Maiden with my own eyes, she's wounded and is only being kept alive through a stasis tube developed by General Ironwood of the Atlasiyan military."_ She would go silent as a bust of Port's finally shattered under the weight of the young man's Semblance, hating that instead of easing his wounds and giving him peace. She was instead pouring the salt of what appeared to be a deep and tightly wrapped conspiracy between those who were duty bound to help prepare them for life outside the safety of their school. _"I understand how you're feeling right now: To you this is just another secret that Ozpin's managed to keep from all of us, another reason to mistrust the man who treats you as a lab rat. But I assure you, this is no variable in a math equation..if I don't take on the Maiden's power then whoever attacked her previously may return to finish the job."_ She would go silent once again, giving him time to digest the magnitude of what he had been told and what he would do with it.

 _"I still don't understand why you would come to me and not Jaune, you obviously care for him a great deal..a knight like him is exactly what is needed in this situation, not a worthless attack dog like me."_ Bálor would wince upon hearing himself be described in such a base and demeaning way, but that was his frame of mind back then..before the Fall changed everything. Even as the Pyrrha of his memories held her hands out to him in a pleading gesture, he still had trouble comprehending why she would choose a rogue like him over the man she had spent so much time with as a friend, teammate, and even pupil.

 _"It's because that I care so much about Jaune so much that it can never be him. The life of a Maiden is a long and weary one full of hardship, I won't let Jaune be dragged into such tedium after coming so far as a Huntsman. He deserves better than that."_

The redhead would take a step towards the conflicted Faunus, her hands still held out as she did so. _"I need a guardian that will protect me without getting bogged down by emotion, someone I know who will go for the jugular before anything else, someone…that I could never fall in love with no matter how long or how far the journey takes us."_ The green-eyed Huntress would go silent as she realized just how pointed her words sounded, a feeling compacted by the dumbstruck look on his face. _"I-I'm sorry..I didn't mean to word it so bluntly, it's just-"_

Bálor would hold up a hand to stop her hurried apology, a Pyrrha Nikos classic. The amber-eyed Huntsman would sigh as he weighed his options carefully: Carry on as he did now and face a surefire incarceration down the road, or become the cold and calculated protector that she was now asking of him and travel all of Remnant by her side.

Not a couple, nor a team.

Just a Maiden and her guardian, out to try and survive the combined weight of their burdens.

 _"So...will you become my guardian?"_

 _ **Alright everyone put down the pitchfoks and just like E-Li Drake says: Lemme talk to ya!**_

 _ **The above chapter in no way pushes for OCxPyrrha, this is strictly a business deal between the pair, because as I see it: the life of a Maiden is a solitary one, you never see Amber with any sort of a traveling companion (outside of the horse) and if you think about it, any Kingdom with a Maiden in their borders would set her loose upon the neighbors as a way to expand their territory. If she refuses to respond, threaten the lives of her loved ones and force her hand.  
From a practicality standpoint, using Bálor as a guardian effectively negates this threat because at no point will they become intimate. He's basically a gun for hire in order to keep anyone from trying to use her, her heart has and always will remain with Jaune**_

 _ **Even posthumously.**_

 _ **As for the Lancaster portions, I edited those heavily to reflect less of a need for Ruby to reunite with Bálor, and instead trying to cope with the enormity of the situation unfolding around her.**_

 _ **And if you're gonna question the whole cosmic magnet thing: Little Red Riding Hood and the Big Bad Wolf, those two SHOULD be able to sense each other!**_

 _ **For those who like the story, go vote for it in the poll on my profile page. Or one of the other ones, whatever floats your ship.**_

 _ **And that's not an insult, that's just a fact of life!**_


	3. Of Men and Monsters

_**Man alive am I glad this semester's over, I feel drained on every level imaginable..but I figured I'd try to update ONE story before collapsing into my bed.**_

 _ **RWBY owned by Rooster Teeth, Bálor to me, any other third party mentioned within belongs to their respective parent company**_

By time the red-hooded reaper and her knight would return to camp, the silence between the pair would hang heavily over them like a thick fog over a port town by the sea. Ruby would look over at the fair-haired young man with quiet concern, on the one hand she certainly felt her fair share of relief after finally divulging the finer details of her side quest to Jaune. But she would remember the slow but apparent scowl that had begun to form upon his face as she got into the grittier details of their battle, as well as the verbal mud slinging that had transpired between them.

"That's what caused him to fly off the handle and attack you? Because he was jealous that you decided to travel with me and the team instead of him?" Jaune's normally calm blue eyes would gleam with the slightest glimmer of hatred towards the silver-haired Faunus, mostly because of his actions toward the crimsonette herself and the fact that he would react so violently to someone he had once held so close to his heart. "That's the stupidest reason for him to do anything that I've heard yet, and that's not counting the time he begged, **BEGGED** Ren and I to dress as slave boys while he was planning out another one of his stupid entrances!" Ruby would smile wistfully as she remembered the event in question, and while her lupine friend hadn't exactly begged to the same severity that the knight had expressed but Bálor had indeed reached out to the pair to play The Boys to his own Dalton Castle with zero success, in fairness though the gunslinger and the knight were unaware of just how well Castle treated the pair whenever they weren't playing up to the gimmick in Ring of Honor.

"You should stay here and get some rest Ruby, those injuries are gonna take some time to heal, and besides…you've been through more then enough insanity after tonight." He would frown slightly as the cookie-loving Huntress was now skimming through her scroll with a determined look upon her face, even as her aura was slowly working their way over the few scrapes and bruises she had managed to acquire during the course of her heated battle with their former ally. "I'm serious Ruby, no more searching for clues and following leads on so-called friends who don't want to be found." Jaune was never one to play Bad Cop to anybody (not even as a joke) but after having heard just how disastrous things had turned out between the duo, having torn apart an (admittedly already damaged) town over a small choice such as which one of them she stood with. By attacking his friend the wolf had crossed an unspoken line between the men, he had already lost one woman that was close to his heart and while he had yet to obtain the strength necessary to defeat the raven-haired pyromancer that now haunted his nightmare but Jaune did believe himself to be angry enough to bring down a rabid dog who refused to heel at the feet of the few people who treated him with some semblance of kindness.

Ruby would wince as she knelt down to rest in her sleeping bag, whether it was from the pain that she was currently enduring from her slowly mending or from the slight edge of anger that was permeating from the blonde huntsman's voice was hard to tell.

"And what are you going to do while I'm stuck here "resting" here and not looking out for our friends?" The crimsonette would sigh as her tired body was grateful to feel the softness of her sleeping bag, her silver eyes closing as the mind drifted into a dark and dreamless sleep before she could get a proper answer from the knight and allowing Jaune to take a sigh of relief as he was spared having to give his friend an answer she truly wouldn't want to hear.

"You intend to go after him on your own, don't you?" The voice of the raven-haired gunslinger Lie Ren would snap Jaune out of his quiet planning as he made sure that Ruby wasn't just feigning sleep, the fair-haired young man would face his teammate with a look of cold focus as the raven-haired huntsman looked back to ensure that his own partner was still at rest before walking past Jaune in a silent plea for him to follow as they made their way towards a nearby lake, no doubt wanting to talk as they did so.

"He attacked Ruby, you and I both know that he would never do that if he were still in his right mind." His hand would grip the hilt of his sword tightly as visions of the silver-haired Faunus attacked the red hooded girl caused his blood to boil beneath his skin, the amber-eyed antagonist and himself had never exactly seen eye to eye during the former's tenure as a student at Beacon with the silent threat of a fight always looming between them. It was only through Ruby's interference (and sometimes even a stern talking to from Goodwitch or Ozpin) that tensions were relieved, thus allowing the two young men to go about their day in relative peace without bloodshed. "He's too dangerous to be left running loose where he might end up hurting civilians while fighting something like the Grimm or Dust knows whatever psychopaths are running out there after what happened at Beacon, I know how Ruby felt about him when things went sideways but after the carnage I saw in their last fight..there's no going back for him at this point!"

Ren would absorb this knowledge with the same kind of stoic calm that enabled him to take his life as an orphan in stride, after all he needed this kind of calm to balance out the seemingly boundless frenetic energy that belonged to his partner Nora Valkyrie.

"Jaune I understand that things have been difficult since Beacon fell, the nightmares you've had to endure up to this point are something that I wouldn't wish upon anyone, not even our most hated enemies." The raven-haired young man would stop walking as the lake loomed before the pair, the expanse of calm waters was a welcome sight to their frayed nerves as the two quietly sat down next to one another. "You feel indebted to Ruby for helping you through those sleepless nights, and you want nothing more than to help her out of her own living nightmare by bringing down Bálor..right?" Ren would gather a small handful of pebbles and begin skipping them across the pond one at a time, silently awaiting his friend's response and awaiting the inevitable answer that would follow.

"That's not what this is about at all!" Jaune would shake his head furiously as the phantom sensation of Ruby's lips touching his caused him to blush deeply, composing himself before the gunslinger saw any sign of it. "Bálor's always been a little unbalanced sense he first showed up at the Academy: picking fights just for the hell of it, attacking Cardin and the other guys just because of some stupid bet between him and Goodwitch." The blonde-haired young man would stare at his reflection with tired silence, thinking back on the only other woman who had given him purpose to fight and biting back the grief that bubbled up in the depths of his heart as he remembered the last and most passionate kiss they shared together. Before she had flung him into a locker and had him rocketed away to safety, even as she was most assuredly walking towards the very demise he had been forced to witness in his nightmares. "It was always just a matter of time before tensions boiled over between the two of us, and now that Ruby isn't here to smooth things over anymore…" Jaune would leave the declaration of battle unspoken as he stood up and patted his pocked, relieved to feel the familiar shape of his scroll firmly in its resting place as he made his way into the forest to practice the swordplay drills that Pyrrha had left for him in video form.

Just in case there ever came a day where she wasn't there to guide him.

The kiss was always the first thing that would come to mind whenever he recalled his final hours as a student at Beacon Academy, the skies were abuzz with the beastly snarls of the Grimm, the cries of those who were unable to flee the academy grounds whether by choice or because their escape routes were now in enemy hands.

But none of that mattered to the wolf Faunus for he had been raised in war zones as far back as he could recall, the constant popping of gunfire happening around him equated to nothing more then a simple Tuesday morning walk through Vacuo's simulation grounds.

 _"Huh, I guess I'm not needed here after all."_ Bálor would give a slight smirk of relief as Pyrrha and Jaune separated from their kiss and turned to leave the area, content that the real knight would have the situation well in hand. _"Ever the hero eh Jauney-boy?"_ His jovial gait would come to a halt as he heard the familiar phrase that had become a staple of his recent interactions with the spear maiden, his blood running cold at the sound of two simple words.

"I'm sorry." This was quickly followed by the sound of a startled Jaune being tossed into something metallic, and by the time the silver-haired young man would turn around race back to the spot where he had been eavesdropping on the pair he would instead find Pyrrha standing alone while staring at the night sky as a rocket-powered locker flew through the skies of Beacon..hopefully to land somewhere safe.

"Why? Why would you do that?!" Sure, Jaune wasn't wasn't exactly sitting pretty at the top of the wolf's Christmas card list at the moment. (Nor would there ever be any chance that he would be in the near future) But even Bálor knew that Jaune would brave the frigid depths of Hell if it meant that he could help out Pyrrha in some form or fashion, and yet the statuesque redhead had willingly sent him away in a cramped steel cocoon of safety. "He would've done anything you asked of him..even walk this lonely road you claim to be trapped in, sure he wouldn't see his family or friends ever again..but dammit he would've been fine as long as you were there beside him!?" The wolf Faunus would feel the familiar tug of his Aura crying out to be free, to become something more than a shield against harm. But even as the rage continued to build in the young man's heart, he would stay quiet as Beacon's shining star turned to face its deepest shame as fresh tears fell from her emerald eyes.

"And that's exactly why I couldn't do it!" Pyrrha would slowly make her way towards the indignant Faunus, unperturbed by his twin pools of molten amber fury as she stopped a few steps short of getting nose to nose with him. "He's done so much for me during our time together, he's been a trustworthy teammate, a wonderful partner, and a more loving boyfriend then I've had any right to ask for!" Her green eyes would gaze into his, a silent and invisible battle of wills playing out for a moment before the silver-haired young man would begrudgingly avert his gaze and relent to her iron will. "I can't ask him to throw all of that away, not for my sake…" She would begin to make her way inside of Beacon Tower, stopping when she felt her lupine companion grasp her wrist firmly.

"And what gives you the right to lay such a burden at my feet, I'm no different then the two of you: I have my own hopes and dreams that I intend to follow through once the smoke clears from this insanity!" Bálor would go quiet as his envisioned himself making a quaint and cozy home with Ruby, the two of them trading off missions while doing their best to raise children. Sure it wasn't the bloody and heartless death that his superiors had dealt out for him when they sent a frightened and shivering young man into spec. ops. But if there was one good thing that came out of his Faustian deal with Ozpin, it was getting the chance to meet his Little Rose and entrust her with what little of his heart that remained unbroken. "I don't intend to let this tower be my grave Pyrrha, no more than I intend to help you in your suicide mission against the psychopath behind all of this." Satisfied that he had finally put down Pyrrha's hopes for a guardian once and for all, the wolf would release the spear maiden from his grip and walk away from her. Except that in his brief moment of smugness he had left himself vulnerable to her whims, and thanks to that the amber-eyed telekinetic found himself in the vice-like grip of an already upset Pyrrha Nikos who would proceed to drag him to the floor. "Release me! I have no intention of becoming your guardian!" His continued indignance would only succeed in further angering the redhead now situated above him, tensing as he felt her breath upon the nape of his neck.

"Do you remember why it was that I asked you to become my Guardian back inside that storage shed? The exact reason that I came to a lone wolf such as yourself and not the very man I gave my heart to on the night of the Couple's Dance?" The strength of her grip refused to weaken as she waited patiently for his reply, not surprised when she had to resort to literally twisting his arm for a proper answer.

"Ow ow fuck! Okay, you said it had something to do with wanting someone you could never fall in love with!" The wolf would snarl angrily as she twisted his arm a little more, this time eliciting a yelp of agony before leaning in close once more. "Rest assured that when we survive this, "love" will be nowhere near the list of words I'd use to describe our future relationship together." He would yelp again as she gave another twist of his arm before releasing him outright and watching him writhe in pain.

"That still fully doesn't explain why I chose you Bálor, there are plenty of men in my life that I can safely say that I will never love: The various agents who attempted to turn me into their personal object, selfish bigots like Cardin Winchester and his ilk, but do you know what makes you different from even racist, lust driven individuals like them?" She would look down to see the injured Faunus trying to get the blood flow going back to his injured limb, deciding to strike the fatal blow before he had a chance to fully recover his senses and counterattack. "It's because you lack even the simplest understanding towards the concept of "Love", for how could someone who spends his every waking moment wrapped in a blanket of hurt and self-loathing even hope to love someone else?" Pyrrha would use her Semblance to pin him to the ground, secretly thanking the gods that his current outfit was home to a bevy of metal studs and spikes. "It's impossible for someone to fix themselves by going headfirst into a relationship, that's not how love works…you can't borrow pieces from those who love you in order to keep yourself together like some deranged science experiment." She would struggle to meet the downed Faunus's gaze, but she knew that from his continued silence that her words had struck home and demolished whatever plans he had held so tightly to himself like a rotted security blanket. "Now..I'm going to release you from my Semblance's grip and proceed on ahead towards the enemy, take a little time to gather yourself together before proceeding up the tower." Without another word, the "Invincible Girl" would step inside the wrecked elevator cart and guide it up the elevator shaft via her Semblance. Leaving behind her emotionally destroyed target, as well as the dark veil of protection that was now wrapping itself around him like a cocoon.

 _"If only I had just given into the searing hatred I had felt back then, maybe I would've been strong enough to annihilate Cinder…then Pyrrha would still be alive, and I wouldn't be stuck with a lasting memento of the individual who pretty much labeled me a sociopath. Or am I just a monster mow?"_ The wolf Faunus would stare down at the circlet he gripped within his hand, it was the only thing left behind following the new Fall Maiden's execution of his tormentor. Originally he had thought to just return it to a member of Team JNPR in order to be rid of the spear maiden's hate filled spiel, but then he remembered that those people would never know of the venomous barbs she had hurled his way prior to her demise. And thanks to his own reckless actions towards friend and foe alike, his words carried even less weight then a helium-filled balloon. _"You took away any chance of my leading a normal life when you said I lacked the capacity to love! So I'll make sure that for as long as I live on, that the soul of the great Pyrrha Nikos will_ _ **NEVER**_ _find peace!"_ Bálor would clench the circlet in his teeth as the Black Aura began to work its twisted magic, mending the injuries given to the Grimm that used to inhabit the cave he now stayed in. For now, it was only a matter of time before he rose once again with a renewed determination to punish those who had hurt him.

Jaune Arc now stood alone in the forest away from his team's campsite, his sword drawn and sweat slowly sliding down his neck as Pyrrha's instructions to him continued to play in a loop. _"Alright Jaune, just like we practiced. Follow these instructions: Shield up, keep your grip tight, don't forget to keep your front foot forward."_ Pyrrha's voice was loving yet she never lapsed in her instruction, nor would she as her words spurred him forth to slash and cut the phantom visages of the pyromancer who had taken his first love away from him. However upon swinging for the third slash the pyromancer would be replaced by a demonic wolf with silver fur, his emotions heightened to a boil as the strike literally cut through both the demon as well as a decent chunk of the actual tree that lay behind it. _"I want you to know that I'm proud of you, I've never someone so determined to better themselves, You've grown so much since we've started training, and I know this is just the beginning,"_

Normally Pyrrha's words would be a much needed comfort to his tired muscles, but on this night it would be a weak balm to aid his troubles: His nightmares had seemed only to stretch further on into the night, the group was still no closer to either Haven Academy nor any type of lead into why their own school had been attacked. And now a demon he thought had been left behind was now thirsting for the life of a friend he held near and dear to his heart, such circumstances would drive most ordinary men to actively seek out their antagonist despite being ill-prepared. _"…I want you to know that I'm just happy to be a part of your life…I'll always be here for Jaune."_ Those were the last words that would be spoken before the loop began anew, but instead of resuming his training in earnest as his partner began the lesson once again Jaune would simply stare at the image of Pyrrha briefly before finally pausing the video in question and proceeding to weep.

"Every night it's the same damn thing! Shield up, grip tight, I'm proud of you! I'll always be here for you!" His grip upon the scroll would tighten as he stared into his partner's frozen green eyes, so full of life and happiness despite the cold reality that there wasn't even a body to ship home to Mistral. Not even her treasured circlet remained, despite Ruby's assurances that it had been the only thing to survive the spear maiden's destruction there had been no trace of it inside of Beacon Tower. Not even when he had run himself ragged in trying to locate the object on a three day search without food or sleep did Jaune Arc locate even a scrap of it. "Every night it's the same drills, the same pride, the same…empty promises!" Suppressing a growl of frustration as he turned off the video in question, his eyes would stop on the red X that represented the delete command as his pointer finger trembled and hovered above it.

 _"Go ahead Jauney-boy, wipe away that stupid video..she was way out of your league anyhow"_ The disembodied voice of Cardin Winchester would speak to him while flashes of his earlier days as a much less polished Huntsman played out before him, shaking his head to dispel the images from his sight only to be greet with the visage of the woman Ruby referred to as "Cinder". _"She was twenty times the warrior you could ever hope to be, and I reduced her to mere ashes…what chance do you think a weak child like you has against me?"_ The knight would toss his scroll aside as he unsheathed Corcea Mors and split the ghost in half, even as she taunted him with her laughter as she disappeared.

"My God, I think I'm going insane…" Sheathing his sword without a second thought before he ended up hurting himself in his delirium, slipping into a kneeling position as he closed his eyes and began to slowly regain his composure and his breathing.

 _"Insanity isn't that bad Jaune, lord knows that it's done wonders for my world!"_ Bálor's voice would speak into his ears, causing him to draw his weapon again and point it at the wolf Faunus, his amber eyes eerily bright under these particular circumstances. _"Besides, we both know that as you are now that you have NO CHANCE of beating me! And that's just going off the abilities you already know about, what makes you think that I haven't picked up new tricks in my travels..and all you have to guide you are Pyrrha's same old boring lessons!"_ This would be the tipping point for the azure eyed huntsman who proceeded to unsheathe his weapon and lash out at the phantom in front of him, not stopping until his body collapsed and he fell to the ground in physical and emotional exhaustion and Bálor's laughter died down to a soft whisper in the dark recesses of his heart.

 _"I know this can be frustrating, and it can feel like so much effort to progress such a small amount. But, I want you to know that I'm proud of you…"_ The familiar and reassuring voice of his partner would serve to drown out even those ghosts, as he stared up at Remnant's broken moon with the feeling that even in death his maiden of victory was indeed watching out for him.

 _ **Oh I can see the complaints coming from a mile away" "Pyrrha would never say such cruel things!" "Stop bashing Arkos", "Oh, I bet it turns out she loves the Mary-Sue the whole time!"**_

 _ **Please allow me to categorically kill that shit right now.**_

 _ **1\. Sometimes you have to be cruel to be kind, it's the same line of thought that my old man used on me whenever I refused my leg braces..and also why I'm constantly sitting nearby a bottle of painkillers just wondering if tonight's the night I take ten too many.**_

 _ **2\. I love Arkos, really I do. It WAS the first RWBY ship i sailed with. It inspired my very first fanfic "Celebrity" (although without the Barenaked Ladies lyrics backing it, it's lost some of its bite)**_

 _ **3\. Really? Have you not READ a Bálor story? My boy's a few fries short of a happy meal on a GOOD DAY! You really think Pyrrha can love that unconditionally? I know it's fanfiction and all but geez..I left that level of naivete behind with the "Peaches" series.**_

 _ **Now for the real announcements, as much as I love RWBY and all the fun..it's given me in the nearly two years since I discovered it on Netflix, Volume 4 is just rubbing me all kinds of wrong.**_

 _ **So I set up a poll for you the fans to decide where I hang my hat in 2017: Do I stay in RWBY? Migrate over to Gamindustri and the Hyperdimension Neptunia series, go back to the Black Rock Shooter series and carve out Genji's story? Hop on over to Freezing and set up shop with the Untouchable Queen herself, or finally settle up my many crossovers? You decide! I've already written stories for Neptunia and BRS, and plans for a future Freezing fic are on my profile page, you already know where my RWBY and Crossover fics are -_-**_

 _ **Ta-ta for now!**_


End file.
